Expenses Of Inlet Tax Board Trigger Probe

July 20, 1985|By Ruth Rasche of The Sentinel Staff

MELBOURNE — The state attorney's office is investigating to determine if criminal charges should be filed against Sebastian Inlet Tax District commissioners in light of discrepancies found during a state audit.

Auditors found almost $18,000 in ''unauthorized or unsupported'' commission travel expenses and almost $4,300 in overpayments to consulting contractors and engineers between Oct. 1, 1980, and March 31, 1985.

The district also had inadequate support for $715,072 of the $729,821 it paid for construction, maintenance and repair work at the inlet during that period, the audit showed.

Assistant State Attorney Michael Hunt said Friday that he and State Attorney Norm Wolfinger met last week with state auditors to discuss the audit.

Hunt said that the findings warrant more investigation and that it is possible that some commissioners will be brought before a Brevard County grand jury or face state criminal charges.

In March the Joint Legislative Auditing Committee in Tallahassee voted to conduct the audit. The Brevard legislative delegation had requested it after Commissioner Carol Senne and several former commissioners testified before a grand jury about discrepancies within the commission, Hunt said.

''I was upset at the commission's lack of procedures,'' Senne said. ''I knew what was going on was not quite up to snuff -- it was sloppy work for a governmental agency.''

Senne said the state attorney's investigation ''is long overdue.''

''I've been trying for over a year to approve regular operating procedures, but all my motions died for lack of a second,'' she said.

In the final audit report dated July 12, 1985, State Auditor General Ernest Ellison said:

-- Construction contractors and consulting engineers for the inlet usually were not chosen in accordance with the law.

-- Contracts usually were verbal.

-- Expenses usually were not supported by documents to show that the goods and services had been received or that the expenses were necessary to carry out the board's duties.

-- Travel reimbursements to board members usually were unsubstantiated. The auditors' review showed that about $990 of travel advances were not accounted for properly and should be returned.

Ellison said his office had sent information compiled during the audit to the state attorney's office.

Commissioner Ed Balme said Friday he had not read the audit and has not been contacted by the state attorney.

''If we haven't complied with the law, we'll sure as heck do it,'' he said. ''We've had an attorney present at every one of our meetings, so if we're doing something wrong I'll be disturbed about our legal help.

The commissioners will meet at 3 p.m. Tuesday at the district's office in Melbourne to discuss the audit and to write a policy on the selection and payment of consulting contractors and engineers and on travel expense reimbursement procedures, as the auditors recommended.

The inlet, which straddles the Brevard and Indian River county line, is supported by taxes from the two counties' residents.